text: Bryostatin 1 was first isolated in the 1960s by George Pettit from extracts of a species of bryozoan, Bugula neritina, based on research from samples originally provided by Jack Rudloe to Jonathan L. Hartwell’s anticancer drug discovery group at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The structure of bryostatin 1 was determined in 1982. As of 2010 20 different bryostatins had been isolated.
  The low concentration in bryozoans (to extract one gram of bryostatin, roughly one tonne of the raw bryozoans is needed) makes extraction unviable for large scale production. Due to the structural complexity, total synthesis has proved difficult, with only a few total syntheses reported so far. Total syntheses have been published for bryostatins 1, 2, 3, 7, 9 and 16. Among them, Wender’s total synthesis of bryostatin 1  is the shortest synthesis of any bryostatin reported, to date.
  A number of structurally simpler synthetic analogs also have been prepared which exhibit similar biological profile and in some cases greater potency, which may provide a practical supply for clinical use.